2020's Best and Worst Pro-Wrestling Matches of the Year (plus Recommended)

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Sports Argument Stadium > The Hammer House: Stinger Splash Zone > 2020's Best and Worst Pro-Wrestling Matches of the Year (plus Recommended)

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Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Rarity posted:

HM: Liger Retirement Match, NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 14, 04/01

Had zero expectations for this and they crushed it

4thed, I'm pretty sure Taguchi was the only one in there under 50 and they moved like they were all in their prime. It's just a shame it couldn't have been longer but for what it was it was excellent.

# ¿ Jan 4, 2020 09:41

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# ¿ May 21, 2024 14:44

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

karmicknight posted:

MOTYC: IWGP United States Heavyweight Title Match: Jon Moxley vs. Lance Archer, 1/04 Wrestle Kingdom 14

oh my loving god yes

# ¿ Jan 4, 2020 10:53

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

MOTYC HIROMU TAKAHASHI WILL OSPREAY TOKYO DOME WK14 1/4

# ¿ Jan 4, 2020 11:30

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Rarity posted:

HM: Tetsuya Naito vs. Jay White, NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 14, 04/01

Hurt by following up the Match of the Year but still very good

there may in fact be a god

# ¿ Jan 4, 2020 12:20

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Jerusalem posted:

MOTYC: Kazuchika Okada (C) vs. Kota Ibushi for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 14 Night 1

Absolutely incredible from the entrances to the outfits to the wrestling to the character work to the facial expressions to the ending. Just the absolute best possible wrestling from the best possible wrestlers in the world today.

yah

# ¿ Jan 4, 2020 13:11

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

WK14 night 2 tokyo dome 1/5

MOTYC Kenta vs Goto
HM ZSJ vs Sanada
HM BC vs Roppongi 3k
MOTYC Jon Moxley vs Juice Robinson

# ¿ Jan 5, 2020 09:46

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

extradite THIS! posted:

WMOTYC: NJPW vs Music Rights, Wrestle Kingdom 14

MOTYC Chris Jericho vs Hiroshi Tanahashi Tokyo Dome 1/5

# ¿ Jan 5, 2020 10:21

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Jerusalem posted:

MOTYC: Kazuchika Okada (C) vs. Tetsuya Naito (C) for the IWGP Heavyweight AND Intercontinental Championships - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 14 Night 2

A match/main event/story years in the making, executed to perfection. New Japan is the best wrestling promotion on the planet.

# ¿ Jan 5, 2020 11:11

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Rarity posted:

Screw you guys I'm going MOTYC

MOTYC: EVIL/Shingo vs. Ishii/Goto, NJPW New Year's Dash, 06/01

loving ridiculous amount of BEEF

Yes!

# ¿ Jan 6, 2020 13:24

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Jerusalem posted:

MOTYC: Hiromu Takahashi (C) vs. Ryu Lee for the IWGP Jr Heavyweight Championship - The New Beginning in Osaka - 2/9

This THWAK match THWAK absolutely THWAK ruled THWAK and THWAK these THWAK two THWAK are THWAK just THWAK perfect THWAK against THWAK each THWAK other.

Yes.

# ¿ Feb 9, 2020 10:42

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

MOTYC: Minoru Suzuki VS Jon Moxley for the US HEavyweight Championship NB Osaka 2/9

these two are criminally loving insane

# ¿ Feb 9, 2020 11:12

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

forkboy84 posted:

2nd this.

If I could change one thing about New Japan I'd like to see them do 5 minutes less in most of their big matches. There doesn't need to be so many matches going over 20 minutes.

Yeah, it was OK but didn't need 30 minutes, 3rd

# ¿ Feb 9, 2020 12:11

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Simultaneous MOTYC/WMOTYC to Goldberg vs Bray Wyatt and Ricochet vs Brock Lesnar from WWE Blood Money

# ¿ Mar 1, 2020 04:09

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Dango Bango posted:

WMOTYC: Goldberg vs. Braun Strowman - WWE Wrestlemania 4/4

lol

yes

also MOTYC: Goldberg vs. Braun Strowman - WWE Wrestlemania 4/4

looooool

# ¿ Apr 5, 2020 03:55

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Jerusalem posted:

MOTYC: Yuji Nagata vs. Minoru Suzuki - NJPW New Japan Cup Night 2 6/17

Two old men beat the utter poo poo out of each other and it absolutely loving ruled from start to finish. God I wish this had been in front of a crowd but even in an empty arena it was just so loving great.

YWAH

# ¿ Jun 18, 2020 01:52

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Jerusalem posted:

MOTYC: Shingo Takagi vs. SHO - New Japan Cup Night 3 6/22

Just insane from start to finish, lariats and suplexes and just loving killing each other at an insane pace. Glorious. And that finish... holy fuccccck.

Yes, I agree

# ¿ Jun 22, 2020 12:05

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

MOTYC: Taichi vs Hiroshi Tanahashi, New japan Cup 22/06

What the gently caress

# ¿ Jun 22, 2020 13:06

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Rarity posted:

MOTYC: Kota Ibushi vs. Taichi, NJPW New Japan Cup, 01/07

Taichi is the wrestler of 2020

# ¿ Jul 1, 2020 12:37

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Cerebral Bore posted:

MOTYC: Hirooki Goto vs EVIL New Japan Cup 01.07

BEEF BEEF BEEF

I loved the counter sequences and I loved the start where they just went straight at it and I loved the end and I just loved the match so yes.

# ¿ Jul 1, 2020 13:00

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Jerusalem posted:

MOTYC: Hiromu Takahashi vs. Tomohiro Ishii - NJPW New Japan Cup Night 7

Turns out if you take arguably the best Junior in the world and Big Match Tom TOUGH AND HARD BITE YOU the MOTYC Generating machine and put them together in a match, that match loving rules.

Cerebral Bore posted:

MOTYC Tomohiro Ishii vs Hiromu Takahashi New Japan Cup 02.07

Close the thread J-Ru, it's not gonna get better than this.

Rarity posted:

MOTYC: Tomohiro Ishii vs. Hiromu Takahashi, NJPW New Japan Cup, 02/07

I agree with all of these posts.

# ¿ Jul 2, 2020 11:30

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Rarity posted:

MOTYC: EVIL vs. YOSHI-HASHI, NJPW New Japan Cup, 02/07

Perfect

Can't agree more

# ¿ Jul 2, 2020 11:40

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Jerusalem posted:

HM: EVIL vs. Kazuchika Okada - NJPW New Japan Cup Final 7/11

Some weirdness towards the end took away from it somewhat, but this was yet another Okada match where 10 minutes into the match you realize it has been going for 25 minutes, and that is great.

extradite THIS! posted:

I’m gonna do it

gently caress you all

HM: MASTER WATO vs DOUKI, New Japan Cup Finals (7/11)

I expected nothing due to catastrophic debut and a DOA gimmick but Wato was actually good and DOUKI was also good, people clapped for DOUKI and Wato did good kung fu stuff and his dumb pose. What more do you want

nthing both of these

# ¿ Jul 11, 2020 12:00

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Cerebral Bore posted:

MOTYC Shingo Takagi vs SHO NJPW Dominion

What a goddamn war.

Rarity posted:

MOTYC: SHO vs. Shingo Takagi, NJPW Dominion, 12/07

These guys couldn't have a bad match if they tried

That match was absolutely insane and i loved every second of it, nth

# ¿ Jul 12, 2020 08:46

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

I have no idea what to call it, whether to HM, WMOTYC, MOTYC, or simultaneous MOTYC/WMOTYC but EVIL vs Naito from Dominion was certainly a thing, especially the finishing stretch.

# ¿ Jul 12, 2020 10:32

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

gently caress it, i'll give it a HM for the post-match scene of Hiromu wailing, screaming in the middle of the ring to castlevania boss music

# ¿ Jul 12, 2020 10:38

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

MOTYC: Shingo Takagi (c) Vs El Desperado for the NEVER Openweight Championship, Sengoku Lord 2020-07-25

Absolute perfection.

# ¿ Jul 25, 2020 12:10

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Jerusalem posted:

HM: EVIL (C) vs. Hiromu Takahashi for the IWGP Heavyweight and Intercontinental Championships - NJPW Sengoku Lord 7/25

I was ready to nominate this as a MOTYC until the last couple of minutes, which really took the wind out of my sails. The back half of the match was so loving good though.

I'm sorry but NJPW interference spots just do not work, they stretch my suspension of disbelief so far it just breaks and becomes comical. Is there really not a single referee who even slightly cares and/or is not made out of absolute paper

# ¿ Jul 25, 2020 13:03

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Cerebral Bore posted:

MOTYC El Desperado vs. Toru Yano vs. SANADA vs. Kazuchika Okada

This is how you run a 4-way match. Take notes, literally everyone else.

# ¿ Aug 29, 2020 09:28

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Jerusalem posted:

Sorry, just for the record are you seconding?

Yeah

# ¿ Aug 29, 2020 09:35

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Rarity posted:

MOTYC: Shingo Takagi vs. Minoru Suzuki, NJPW Summer Struggle, 29/08

It turns out when you put 2 really good wrestlers in a ring and have them wrestle a style of match they're both really good at, it loving rules! Nthed.

# ¿ Aug 29, 2020 09:50

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Jerusalem posted:

MOTYC: Hiromu Takahashi (C) vs. Taiji ishimori for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship - NJPW Summer Struggle 8/29

These two are inhuman, superhuman, metahuman. Whatever the word is, they're it. Incredible fast paced action, body control and energy without feeling remotely like a spotfest.

nthed. These two wrestlers packed 30 minutes of moves into less than 15 and made it feel like 2 minutes. I am thoroughly convinced that New Japan has a time dilation machine after watching this.

# ¿ Aug 29, 2020 10:22

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Thanlis posted:

HM: EVIL vs. Naito for the IWGP Heavyweight Title - NJPW Summer Struggle 8/29

Yeah, I�ll do it � not the best match ever but so gratifying to see LIJ protecting each other.

Rarity posted:

MOTYC: Dangerous Tekkers vs. Golden Aces, NJPW Summer Struggle, 29/08

Match itself is probably only HM worthy but the ongoing Tana story pushed it over the top for me

Nthed. DT vs Golden*Balls was a good match with excellent storytelling and EVIL/Naito exceeded expectations.

# ¿ Aug 29, 2020 11:22

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

MOTYC: Minoru Suzuki vs. Tomohiro Ishii, G1 Climax 9/19

13 minutes of the most painful, visceral fight humanly possible.

Mod Edit: Just being careful about match length spoilers for those who haven't seen it.

Somebody fucked around with this message at 10:20 on Sep 19, 2020

# ¿ Sep 19, 2020 10:16

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Jerusalem posted:

MOTYC: Shingo Takagi vs. Switchblade Jay White - NJPW G1 Climax 30 9/19

What a match! Switchblade was right back to his sleazy best, Shingo ruled as always, the face/heel dynamic could not have been clearer, the crowd was hot as hell in spite of all the restrictions on how they can react, and even the requisite interference spots and ref stuff worked beautifully into the story of the match. Commentary losing their loving minds helped a bunch too.

I'll give it a HM because every single BC wrestler doing the exact same thing every single match is just no but the match was very good

# ¿ Sep 19, 2020 10:43

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Rarity posted:

HM: Juice Robinson vs. YOSHI-HASHI, NJPW G1 Climax Night 2, 20/09

YOSHI-HASHI definitely held his end up and it's so great to have Juice back

I'll give it a MOTYC for the crowd. DON DON KAN DON DON KAN

# ¿ Sep 20, 2020 06:46

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

HM: KENTA vs. Hirooki Goto G1 Climax Day 2 20.09
HM: Zack Sabre Jr. vs. EVIL G1 Climax Day 2 20.09
MOTYC: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tetsuya Naito G1 Climax Day 2 20.09

Every bit as good as I remembered and more

# ¿ Sep 20, 2020 08:21

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Rarity posted:

HM: Jeff Cobb vs. Shingo Takagi, NJPW G1 Climax Night 3, 23/09

Jeff Cobb is light years ahead of his G1 last year

Some absolutely ridiculous moves that should have been humanly impossible and none of them felt out of place or done for the sake of doing them. This match was good. Nthed

# ¿ Sep 23, 2020 11:08

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

WMOTYC: Kazuchika Okada vs Yujiro Takahashi G1 Climax 2020-09-23

Make it stop

# ¿ Sep 23, 2020 11:20

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Jerusalem posted:

HM: Minoru Suzuki vs. Taichi - NJPW G1 Climax 30 Night 3 9/23

Suzuki came looking to kill, and Taichi actually made a real effort, and the result was beautiful violence.

nthing for Taichi the sumo wreslter

# ¿ Sep 23, 2020 11:49

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# ¿ May 21, 2024 14:44

Aesculus: Mar 22, 2013

Rarity posted:

HM: SANADA vs. Hirooki Goto, NJPW G1 Climax Night 4, 24/09

Turns out Goto and SANADA have really good chemistry

Jerusalem posted:

HM: Juice Robinson vs. KENTA - NJPW G1 Climax 30 Night 4 9/24

Really good match, lots of energy, and that finish was spectacular.

Nthed. Good poo poo

# ¿ Sep 24, 2020 11:57

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Sports Argument Stadium > The Hammer House: Stinger Splash Zone > 2020's Best and Worst Pro-Wrestling Matches of the Year (plus Recommended)

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